Good deal on a dial indicator set.

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Firefyter-emt

Firefyter-emt

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I just got this in the mail today and I am very happy. If it was sold anywhere else I would of passed, but this was sold at "The Little Machine Shop" for just $20.00 (cross country shipping brought it just under $30.00)

This has so many uses in the shop, use it to dial in your mandrel, set up table saws and drill presses and so on.

The case is better than most, the magnetic base is switchable and works very good. IMHO the base alone is worth $20.00 but combine it with all the special tips and a fairly decent gauge and it's a winner!

Just to warn you. I would not say this is a good "metal shop" indicator, but for woodwork and setting up things like table saws and what not it is more than enough.

http://www.littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=1782&category=

480.1782.jpg
 
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I bought this same deal from them for $17.00 awhile back (good sale) and like emt said, it's not accurate enough for a metal shop but is handy around the woodshop. I use it for a bunch of stuff, especially checking for out-of-round on my bushings before I start turning a pen. If I find that I'm out-of-round, I back off pressure on the tailstock or the mandrel nut. Saves me a lot of oval blanks.
 
For the $20, I have wasted more on less... I took some time to dial in my big old Walker-Turner drill press this weekend. I had a catch and the wood knocked the pipe and knocked the shaft out of alingment (No, I was not happy!) This was the main reason I bought it for to be honest. I began with a wopping .17 runout at the chuck. I have a nice piece of HSS rod that can be held in the chuck. Mark the high spot and give it a tap and check it again. Keep tapping untill it's where it should be. I got it down to well under .1 and that is more than close enough for a 50+ year old drill press! It's better than it ever was now!! [:D]
 
Originally posted by thetalbott4
<br />I bought this same deal from them for $17.00 awhile back (good sale) and like emt said, it's not accurate enough for a metal shop but is handy around the woodshop. I use it for a bunch of stuff, especially checking for out-of-round on my bushings before I start turning a pen. If I find that I'm out-of-round, I back off pressure on the tailstock or the mandrel nut. Saves me a lot of oval blanks.
Click to expand...

Actually Scott they are more accurate than you think.

There are some environments where I work that are very hard on instruments and it does not make sense to spend $100 or more on a top name instrument when one of lesser cost will suffice. It is generally considered that an accuracy and repeatability of 1/2 a graduation is deemed "Good enough for Government work". Of the half dozen that I have purchased (about the same cost as one of the name brands) I have found them the be accurate and repeatable well within the 1/2 graduation (.0005") and surprisingly I have one that has lasted longer that 2 of the name brands in one particularly harsh enviornment. I've had the same luck with those $15.00 harbor freight calipers. The way that I look at it is that if I can get a year or more of good service and then throw it away I'm ahead of the cost of purchasing the name brands for these applications. I'm not sure I would want to rely on them in the final inspection lab but for what they are, the accuracy is surprising.

BTW: I have purchased the exact same indicator from a major industrial supplier for 2- 1/2 times the price from "The Little Machine Shop".
 
I bought this set about a year ago and it has worked very well for me. The bezel on my dial doesn't turn very well but I am still very happy given the price. I added this

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93294

to it a couple of months ago and have been very happy with it.

The dial is very nice at times because it easier to see trends as you rotate an item around but there are other times when this indicator is easier to read and reset for me.

The connection on the back of this indicator is identicle to the dial that comes with the set so it attaches to the base perfectly.

Todd
 
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